Epilogue

EIGHT MONTHS LATER

"How do you like it?"

The question was for Alejandra Torres, Pedro's mother, at first sight of the pool house.

"Oh, my. It is beautiful. So fancy."

It was early spring, the month of April, and well into short-sleeve weather in middle Georgia. Azaleas had bloomed the prior weekend and were prominent still, giant patches of pink, white and lavender scattered throughout the Shepherd property as far out as the new barn Titus had commissioned for the storage of TSA's equipment.

They were standing in the backyard by the pool—Titus, Pedro, Alejandra, and Tucker—in front of the guest house. The painters had done a wonderful job, freshening it up in ivory with chocolate trim. Pedro had mixed annuals with the perennials in the beds out front—red, yellow, and purple—snapdragons, daffodils, and, of course, violets.

Lots of violets.

Titus chuckled. "I don't know that it's all that fancy, Nana P. But I'm glad you approve."

It had been a long day with the five-hour round trip to Atlanta. They had picked her up at the airport hours earlier and were now finally home.

Home.

"It's fancy for her," Pedro whispered to him. "Compared to where we came from, it's the Taj Mahal."

"Tucker, why don't you take Nana P in and show her around her new home?"

P, of course, stood for Pedro. The moniker plus initial had been Tucker's idea. He'd deemed it necessary on the road trip up, a way of distinguishing his new Nana from the current one. He reached out and took the woman's hand as if he'd known her for much longer than a few hours. "C'mon," he said. "I'll give you the grand tour. This place is great. It has a kitchen, a laundry room, and a huge TV."

She placed her hand on his blond head, then glanced at Titus and Pedro. "This is such a joy, you know, so much more than I ever dreamed of. Not only are you providing me a home and reuniting me with my son, but you're also giving me a grandchild to spoil, too."

Titus chuckled. "You won't have to go too far there. He's already spoiled."

"Aw, Daddy. Don't listen to him, Nana P. Let's make microwave popcorn and watch a video. Have you seen Toy Story ?"

Alejandra looked to Titus, teary-eyed and grateful. In her smile, Titus saw Pedro, especially in her eyes. Tucker motioned to the door, and she turned, allowing him to guide her into the small house.

"You're amazing. You know that?" Pedro said. "I'm so lucky."

Titus scoffed. "No. I'm the lucky one. I can provide material things, even a grandson, but you and your mother–y'all are family now. That's the genuine gift here. Of course, we'll be forfeiting sex at the pool, you know? Can't be ravaging you under the stars with your mother looking out the window."

"Oh," Pedro said, considering. "You're right. No more pool play."

"It's a small sacrifice. And we have the house, the shower, and anywhere else we can avoid Tucker."

"My God, we're such adults now. Children and grandmothers. How can this be? I'm only twenty-four."

"Welcome to my world."

"And the pool was our special place, all of last summer. I'm going to miss that. Maybe we can still take advantage of it sometimes. Once my mother gets her driver's license, perhaps they could run errands, or go to The Rialto for a movie. You know, when we're feeling frisky."

"I'm feeling frisky right now." Titus grabbed Pedro's hand and held it to his crotch where Pedro felt firmness beneath the fabric there.

"Wow. No kidding. But you're always horny."

"You complaining?"

"No way."

"Let's get her stuff out of the car and get her settled in. Maybe Tucker can spend the night out here with her. Keep her company."

Pedro goosed Titus's bulge.

"Mph," Titus grunted, hunching over. "What?!"

"She's not even in the country for twenty-four hours and you already have her babysitting."

"Oh, baby. I'm gonna come! I'm gonna come!"

They were in the shower, Pedro's legs spread, hands on the tiled wall, Titus engulfing his smaller frame from behind. He reached around, found Pedro's cock, and began stroking it to match his thrusts.

"Give it to me, babe." Pedro said, panting. "I'm close too. Come for me."

Titus buckled, grasping the moisture-slicked wall for support with one hand. "Unh, unh!" he grunted, his thrusts so intense that he was lifting Pedro to his toes with each plunge. Every morsel of heat he'd been nurturing came pouring out of him, searing streams of ecstasy.

Pedro clenched.

"Wait!" Titus said. "Don't come yet."

Titus pulled out, and Pedro turned to where they were facing each other. He locked his arms around Titus's neck and raised his legs. Titus lifted and lowered him, bearing Pedro's weight and remounting as effortlessly as getting dressed. Pedro latched his legs around Titus's torso, accustomed and confident. Titus began the grind again, slow this time, while Pedro stroked himself. Their eyes met.

"If I didn't know better, I'd think you're ready to come again," Pedro said.

Titus nodded. He was panting, eyes looking feral.

"Wait. So soon?"

"Yeah."

"OK, then. Give me permission."

"No."

Titus carried Pedro over into the corner to use the wall junction for additional support. He released him against it and, once balanced and stable, he got into his groove again.

"You feel amazing, P, so hot, slick, and tight. I feel like I could do this forever. Climaxes be damned. I'll just ride them on through to keep pleasing you."

"I wish I had your stamina." Pedro opened his arms, spreading them to the tiles behind him. "And your strength."

"You do. Sometimes you're stronger."

"Yeah? Well, you're testing it right now."

"You're kind and loving. Always thinking of others."

"Uno Mississippi. Dos Mississippi."

"You always see the good in people."

"Come on and say it, Titus. Please."

He'd released his cock, but Pedro remained on the precipice of climax, especially now, being pressed into the corner. His cock was sandwiched between them, the precum and Titus's smooth stomach providing the perfect launching pad.

"Say what?" Titus teased.

"You know what. It's not as good if you don't tell me."

"Just a few more seconds." Titus stopped. "I have an idea. Grab that bottle of lube and squirt some onto your back."

"What–"

"Trust me, P. I may be strong, but I need a little help."

Pedro eyed Titus, befuddled, his orgasm briefly superseded with curiosity. He reached for the pump bottle on the neighboring soap shelf, lifted it high over his shoulder, and gave several squirts to his upper back against the joining walls.

"Unh," Titus groaned.

"Are you OK?"

"Yeah. Just coming again, thinking about what I'm gonna do."

It was true. Pedro felt Titus throbbing inside him. The switch had flipped once more, and now the current was flowing in steady pulses, almost tranquil. But just as Pedro recognized it, he felt the delicious, hiccupping heat slipping from him.

"Wait, you can't."

"You know better." Titus was lifting Pedro higher, sliding him up the wall, aided by the lubricant on his back. "Besides, you want to come, don't you?"

Pedro dropped the lube bottle, hollow plastic clunking below. He felt Titus's cock slip from inside him. Up, up he went, gliding along the tile, being raised as if Titus were superhuman.

He is , Pedro thought. He's a superhero. My superhero .

His worries had evaporated over the past eight months, but spontaneous acts of strength cemented the security Pedro sometimes still craved. Titus knew this, of course, and enjoyed thrilling him with occasional physical feats. The man would move mountains to prove his love, and Pedro had ultimately succumbed to the comfort of coupledom. Whatever adversity came, they would overcome because Titus was a champion, not only in the bedroom or the football field, but in life.

We'll take on the world if we have to. And we'll win .

Pedro was high now, mentally from endorphins, but also physically, as his arms were now resting on the small lip where the tile ended and met the upper wall. Titus looked up at him, grinning.

"You can come now, baby." Titus opened wide and took Pedro's cock in his mouth.

Pedro felt wet, encompassing heat at his juncture. But before embracing ecstasy, he recalled the first night with Titus at the pool when he had been devoured similarly. He'd called Titus an animal, and Titus had applied the term to all of humanity–a simple claim, yet profound.

Humans were are animals, seeking the fundamentals–food, shelter, love, sex, companionship. That was the gist of it all. Sure, we encounter hurdles along the way, but we overcome them by trusting the right people–loving the right person.

Titus is my person. He may have accepted fate sooner, but I wasn't too far behind.

In that blissful moment, as rapturous euphoria found him high against the shower walls, Pedro slackened–not yet with climax, but with his grip. The tiny, tiptop shelf of tile was by no means much support, but he'd been clinging to it with his fingers and forearms, attempting to ease Titus's burden. Pedro let go, bringing his hands down to his lover's shoulders, and allowing Titus to bear his full weight.

Titus, focused on the task at hand, didn't even notice. He burrowed deeper, determined, again gorging like an animal. Pedro felt the waves of orgasm return, accompanied by the thrill of his weightlessness. He trusted Titus had it all under control, that the easiest thing for him to do now was to give in completely.

So he did.

Later, in bed, they spooned. Titus was on the outside, cocooning Pedro in his arms and legs. It was a position that Pedro would never grow tired of, and one they made love in often because it not only felt comforting and protective to Pedro, but also like Titus possessed him. They had experimented with switching roles a few times over the past year, but this dynamic was a constant. Titus was a natural top, and Pedro preferred it that way. Beauty loved pleasing his beast.

The radio was on, its volume low. Elton John.

"That was fun," Titus said. "Not the pool, but still fun."

"Yes, it was."

"I'm looking forward to hot weather though, when you come home all sweaty and—" He stopped mid-thought. "Hey! What if we get your mother a small space on the square? She could open up a sewing shop, you know? Tailoring, alterations. She could have her own business."

Pedro shook his head, smiling. "You're always two steps ahead, solving problems."

"Why not? It'll give us the pool sometimes. Tucker starts kindergarten in August. And he's all hyped up about Vacation Bible School with Shelly. That's in June."

"What about TSA?"

"You're the boss. Carlos can handle the larger properties. And you have Emilio, Hector, and Miguel. You should probably take some more time off, anyway."

"Says the man who loves taking time off."

"You deserve it."

"Sometimes I wonder if I deserve you."

"Well, don't. Because you do. Everyone deserves happiness, P. Life's short. So what if I want to make love with you often and everywhere?"

"You're just a big horn dog."

Titus chuckled. Southern slang plus Pedro's accent never failed to tickle him. "That, I am."

"Hmm," Pedro said, his hand reaching behind. "Someone is still a little stiff back there."

Titus reached low himself.

"Hmm. Someone is still a little slick down here. I bet I could. Ah, yeah. There we go."

Pedro felt Titus slip inside easy and tender, like returning a favorite book to its place on the shelf.

"You're it, you know," Titus whispered over the delicate rolls of Elton's piano. "The one."

"So are you."

They continued making love, slow and smooth enough to carry on the conversation.

"I wish I could marry you," Titus said.

"Too late."

"That's temporary. Barb did us a solid. She signed the papers so we could get your mother here sooner."

"That's gift enough."

"I wanna give you more, a big traditional wedding. Right here in our backyard."

"Perhaps someday."

"Yeah." Titus sighed softly. "Someday."

"Speaking of solid, you feel thick as a brick down there. What's going on?"

"I don't know. Sure is nice, though."

"Yes, it is."

"I could do this forever, you know? And when I come, I'll just keep riding on through until the next one."

"Prove it, Big Britches."

"I prefer horn dog."

Pedro clenched, giving Titus a solid squeeze down low.

"OH, man," Titus cried.

"That's it. Give it to me."

Titus came, uttering a low, breathy curse in Pedro's ear.

"Yeah. That's good," Pedro said. "But I'm not ready just yet. Show me your magic, Big T."

"I thought I was supposed to be the one giving orders."

"I'm evolving."

"Good. I like that."

Titus found his groove again, passing through one orgasm and detouring toward the promise of another. He reached around for Pedro's cock, but Pedro stayed his hand. "No. Let's wait for you to get close again. I'm enjoying this."

As always, Titus gave in. And when he reached the heavens again, he took Pedro with him.